Print version: Redistricting proposal advances to House floor

John Guidroz

Tuesday

Apr 27, 2010 at 12:01 AMApr 27, 2010 at 6:03 AM

A Democratic-backed redistricting plan is just one step away from legislative approval. But it still lacks the crucial support from GOP House lawmakers to clear that final step. A House committee voted 10-7 Tuesday to move Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 121 to the House floor.

A Democratic-backed redistricting plan is just one step away from legislative approval. But it still lacks the crucial support from GOP House lawmakers to clear that final step.

A House committee voted 10-7 Tuesday to move Senate Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 121 to the House floor.

The measure would still let the legislature draw the maps first but would change the steps in the redistricting process if a compromise could not be reached.

It rivals a Republican-backed proposal that would take the map-drawing power away from lawmakers and into the hands of a committee chosen by the four legislative leaders. That effort, more commonly known as the Fair Map Amendment, remains stalled and was rejected again Tuesday.

The Democratic-backed measure still needs at least one House Republican vote to be approved. House Minority Leader Tom Cross, R-Oswego, says that no GOP lawmaker would support the measure.

"No one in the Republican caucus is in the status quo whatsoever," he said.

The meeting

The committee debate, which lasted more than four hours, included testimony from several interest groups and lawmakers supporting both measures.

The debate turned heated on how the Fair Map Amendment would protect voting rights for minorities. Butler said he took "strong offense" to the committee "parading as great defenders of minority rights."

Raoul countered, saying African-Americans did not support the Fair Map Amendment during earlier redistricting hearings.

"Don't bring tokens out here to defend something like that," he said. "It's insulting to my community as an African-American."

Cross tried to attach his redistricting amendment to the Democratic measure.

His plan would allow an eight-member commission to draw the maps instead of lawmakers. It failed in committee on a 7-9 vote.

What lies ahead

House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, said she is ready to call the measure for a vote Wednesday.

The Republican-backed measure has another shot to get on the Nov. 2 ballot if the legislative stalemate continues. The Illinois Fair Map Commission is working to collect around 280,000 signatures and submit them to the secretary of state's office by May 3.

The coalition reported last week that they had collected 120,000 signatures. Petitions will be accepted by the coalition until April 28.

During the committee debate, Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, asked Czarnik whether the league was paying volunteers to collect signatures.